Motor-cycle.



PATENTED JULY 5, 1904.

J. S. COPELAND.

MOTOR CYCLE.

APPLIUATION funn DEC. 1s, 19034 2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

N0 MODEL.

7. n w. m

No. 764,113. PATBNTED JULY 5, 1904.

J. S. COPELAND. Y

MOTOR CYCLE.

APPLICATION FILED DBO.18, 1903. NO MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

fill f'.'...\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 111 UNITED STATES Patented July 5, 1904.

PATENT OEETEE.

JAMES S. COPEIJAND, OF` HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO POPEMANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, A COR- PORATION OFNEV JERSEY.

MOTOR-CYCLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 764,113, dated July 5,1904. Application led December 18,1903. Serial No. 185,672. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, JAMES S. COPELAND, a citizen of the United States,residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford, in the State ofConnecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in MotorCycles, of which the following is a specification, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

1o This invention relates to motor-vehicles of the class or typecommonly known as motorcycles, including particularly motor-propelledbicycles and tricycles; and it has for its object to improve themounting of the motor 1 5 in the frame of the cycle, both with respectto the location of the motor in the frame and to the means for securingthe motor in the frame, involving also the construction of the frame andthe relative arrangement of the several 2o members thereof.

One particular object is to provide for the location of the motor whereit will be least objectionable to the rider and where also its weightwill contribute to the stability of the c vcle and will assist insecuring good tractive effect, while at the same time the length ofwheel-base of the cycle is increased without the undesirable appearanceof a long open frame.

3o Another particular object is to secure for the frame great strengthwithout undue increase in the weight of the materials employed.

A further object is to provide for the secure attachment of the motor tothe frame with economy of space and without the use of clamps or otherdevices which add weight and detract from the appearance of cycles ofthis character.

The invention will be more fully described hereinafter with reference tothe accompanying drawings, in which for purposes of explanation it isillustrated as embodied in a convenient and practical form, and inwhich- Figure l is a view in side elevation of a motor-bicycle whichembodies the invention, some parts being broken away to save space andothers being removed to prevent confusion. Fig. 2 is a detail view, inside elevation,

of the lower portion of the frame with the 5o crank-shaft and itsbearings, the motor and the intermediate shaft and its bearings removed.Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the lower portion of the motor-casing,and Fig. 4L

is an under side view of the lower portion of the motor-casing.

In general appearance the frame of the cycle substantially resemblesthat of the ordinary diamond frame, the main upper reach or member a,the steering-post tube' or mem- 6o ber a', and the main lower reach ormember a2 being arranged substantially as in the ordinary diamond frame,except that the main lower reach or member is curved upwardly at itsrear or lower end, as shown at af in Figs. 1 and 2. The seat-post ormember is extended downwardly from the rear end of the main upper reachor member a and is brazed, as usual, at its lower end to a crank shaftbracket a, which in the improved frame is 7o provided on its lower andforward side with an eye a, through which the main lower reach or membera2 is extended and in which it is brazed. At its rear end the main lowerreach ormember is brazed to an intermediate bracket a7, from which thelower rear fork-tubes as are extended rearwardly, as usual, and fromwhich one or more stays or braces a are extended upwardly to the upperrear fork-tubes -or stays al", which are secured at their upper 8oforward ends at or near the liunction of the members a and aA1 and attheir lower ends to the corresponding lower fork-tubes a8. Thesteering-post tube receives, as usual, the steeringfork Z) and thesteering-shaft c, the latter hav- 8 5 ing secured thereto the usualhandle-bar d.' The saddle or seat c for the rider may be supported, asusual, by a seat-post which enters the seat-post tube It will beobserved that the extension of the main lower tube a2 down- 9o wardlyand rearwardly through the eye a of the pedal-shaft bracket, itscurvature upwardly to the point of supportof the intermediate bracket,and the connection of the latter by the stays or braces a with the upperrear fork-tubes or stays am not only gives great length to the rearportion of the frame, but provides a structure which it is practicallyimpossible to distort. Moreover, the described construction of the frameis particularly well adapted for its main purposen viz., the firmsupport of the motor in rear of the rider, where the heat from the motoris not objectionable, where oil flying from the motor is not likely tobe thrown upon the clothing of the rider, and where, in conjunction withthe location of the riders weight, it increases the stability of thecycle and secures the maximum traction effect. The advantages lastreferred to will more clearly appear when it is understood, as will bereadily seen upon reference to the drawings, that the pedalshaft f islocated above the main lower member a, while the motor g is mounted inrear of the pedal-shaft, with its main shaft f/s at least as low as thepedal-shaft, placing the weight of the motor, which is supported in thelower curved portion a3 of the main lower member a2, very low in theframe. The low positioning of the motor and of its main shaft f/g alsopermits the intermediate bracket a7 to be brought into line with themain shaft of the motor and the axis o'f the rear wheel and prevents anytendency to distortion of the rear portion of the frame through thedriving connections. In the drawings such connections are shown ascomprising a sprocketpinion gm on the shaft g of the motor, a largesprocket q, a small sprocket g on the intermediate shaft q2, which issupported in the intermediate bracket all, and a large sprocket g3 onthe hub of the driving-wheels g", corresponding sprocketchains rf and q"being provided for the transmission of power from one sprocket-wheel tothe next; but it will be understood that the driving connections can bearranged as preferred and form no part of the present invention.

The motor g rests by its own weight in the seat provided therefor by thecurved rear portion of the main lower member ft2, the curvature of suchmember conforming in part to the curvature of the main lower portion ofthe motor-casing. For the attachment of the motor to the frame there areprovided on the frame three tenons, one of which, fr, is brazed to orforms a part of the pedal-shaft bracket nf, while another, a, islikewise brazed to or forms a part of the intermediate bracket al, andthe third om is brazed to the upper' side of the curved portion a3 ofthe main lower member (r2. The main lower portion (/X of themotor-casing has mortises f/w, g, and 5115 machined therein to receivethe corresponding lugs or tenons al, al", and n.15, respectively, thusallowing the motor-casing to lie closely on the lower frame-tube with amaximum economy of space, while no portion of the frame itself isweakened by any sort of eutsary, by bolts extended through the lugs andtenons and the walls of the mortises, as indicated at fr, fr, and fr,respectively. The motor is thus securely held in position without theuse of additional clamps or subframework of any character.

It will be understood that the details of construction and arrangementcan be varied more or less from what is shown in the accompanyingdrawings, as may be necessary to meet the requirements of differentstructures, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim as my inventionl. A motor-cycle frame of substantially dia mondshape having a seat-post tube, a crankshaft bracket at the lower end ofsaid seatpost tube and provided with an eye and a main lower memberextended through said eye and curved to form a scat for a motor,substantially as shown and described.

2. A motor-cycle frame of substantially diamond shape having a lowermember curved in rear of the pedal-shaft bracket to form a seat for amotor, an intermediate bracket car ried bysaid member, and a stayextended from said bracket to the upper rear fork-tubes, substantiallyas shown and described.

3. A motorcycle frame of substantially diamond shape having a lowermember curved in rear of and below the pedal-shaft bracket to form aseat for a motor, an intermediate bracket carried by said member, and astay extended` from said bracket to the upper rear fork-tubes,substantially as shown and described.

4:. A motor-cycle frame having a main lower member curved to form a seatfora motor and provided with lugs or tenons in combination withamotor-casing having mortises to engage said lugs respectively,substantially as shown and described.

5. A motor-cycle frame having a main lower member curved to form a seatfor amotor and provided with lugs or tenons in combination with amotor-casin g having mortises to engage said lugs respectively, thewalls of said mortises and said lugs or tenons being` perforated toreceive bolts to secure the motor in place, substantially as shown anddescribed.

6. A motor-cycle frame of substantially diamond shape having a lowermember curved in rear of the pedal-shaft bracket to form a seat for amotel', and lugs on said seat, in combination with a motor-casingadapted to said seat and having mortises to engage said lugs,substantially as shown and described.

7. A motor-cycle frame of substantially diamond shape having a lowermember curved in rear of and below the pedal-shaft bracket to form aseat for a motor. and lugs on said seat, in combination with amotor-casing adapted to said seat and having mortises to engage saidlugs, substantially as shown and described.

8. A motor-cycle frame of substantially dia- TOO IIO

IIS

mond shape having e main seat-post tube, a gage said lugs, substantiallyas shown and demain lower member curved to form a seat for scribed. l0 amotor, n pedal-shaft bracket connecting the This specification signedand witnessed this last-named member and said seat-post tube, 12th dayof December', A. D. 1903.

am intermediate bracket carried by said iast- JAMES S. COPELAND. namedmember, and lugs on said brackets and In presence ofthe curved portionof said member, in com- E. A. CULLEN,

bination with a motor-casing mortised to en- A. W. COMSTOCK.

